Currency-washing machine.



Panama Jan. 10,1911.

@SHEETS-SHEET 1.

. CHURCHILL.

I'. B CURRENCY WASHING MCHINE.

` APPLICATION FILED JUNE 11, 1910.

1li! Nouns PErERs cov.. wAsHrNcroN, D.`c.

P. B. CHURCHILL. o-URRBNGY WASHING MACHINE. APPLIOATIVON FILED JUNE 11, 1910.

K im: alanis )urnes co., wnnmamnfbrc.

-umTnn STATES PATENT ommen FRANK `B. v CHURCHILL, 0F SHELBYVILLE, INDIANA.

CURRENCY-WASHING MACHINE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK B. CHURCH- ILL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Shelbyville, in the county of Shelby and State of Indiana, have invented a new and useful Currency-Washing Machine, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in washing machines and has for its object the provision of a simple and easily operated apparatus by the use of which currency and similar articles may be readily cleaned so that they may be used repeatedly without liability of transmitting disease.

The invention also seeks to provide an apparatus for the stated purpose by which the loss of the bills will be prevented and the washing effected in an expeditious manner.

These objects, and such other incidental objects as will hereinafter appear, are attained in the use of the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and the invention consists in certain novel features of the same which will be hereinafter first fully described and then subsequently pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of a washing machine adapted for the purposes of my invention. Fig. 2 is a view, partly in longitudinal section and partly in elevation, of my improvements. Fig. 3 is a view, partly in horizontal section and partly in plan, of the invention. Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section on line 4 4 of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a view partly in end elevation and partly in vertical section showing a mechanical operating mechanism, as well as a bracket for supporting the basket which contains the securities during the washing operation. Fig. 6 is a detail section taken on the line 6 6 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 7 is a similar view taken on the line 7 7 of Fig. 3. Fig. 8 is a similar view taken on the line 8 8 of Fig. 3.

In carrying out my present invention, I will employ a body 1 having curved end lobes or compartments 2 and a central upwardly projecting neck 3 which constitutes the entrance through which the articles to be washed may be placed in the body. The body is also equipped with rockers 4 which are arranged to operate upon a platform or base 5 and are held in proper position upon Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed .Tune 117 1910.

Patented Jan. 10, 1911.

Serial No. 566,387.

the platform by retaining spurs 6 adapted to fit into notches 7 in the base. The body is also provided with an upwardly projecting lever or handle 8 by which it may be operated and is also provided with a cover 9 fitting within the extension 3, the apparatus thus far described being the same as that disclosed in Letters Patent No. 67 3,194, granted to me April 30, 1901. Within the end lobes or compartments 2 are air-tight transverse downwardly inclined partitions 10 whereby air chambers 11 and 12 are formed at the ends of the body above and below the partitions as explained in my aforesaid patent.

In carrying out my present improvements, I secure to the partitions 10, at the inner lower edges of the same, the V-shaped brackets 13 having circular bearings 14 at their centers beyond the edges of the partitions, as clearly shown. These bearings 14 are adapted to receive pins or journals 15 at the opposite ends of a basket 16 which is adapted to contain the currency or other valuables which are to be treated, and linch pins 17 are secured to the partitions 10 by chains 18 and adapted to be inserted through the ends of the journals beyond the bearings 14 in order to retain the basket in place. The basket 16 is of a foraminous character so that while the bills may be held within the basket and prevented from floating around in the body of the machine, the water or other cleansing agent may have ready access to the bills so as to act thereon and remove the dirt therefrom. The basket comprises a main frame bar 19 which will ordinarily be of an elliptical form in plan view and of a size determined by the desired capacity of the machine. The journals 15 are formed upon'and project from this main bar, and at intervals along the same I provide transverse straps or bars 20 and longitudinal straps 21 constituting a framework to and within which a perforated or open covering 22 is secured, said covering being of wire netting or cloth fabric, as may be preferred. It will be readily noted, upon reference to the drawings, that the transverse and longitudinal bars or straps 20 and 2l are shaped to provide curved sides and vends to the basket so that the formation of corners in the basket is overcome and no angles will be presented to tear or otherwise mutilate the currency. It will be noted that in lthe form of basket illustrated I have employed three transverse bars and three longitudinal bars. The outer bars of cach set of three are continuous across the top of the basket, while the intermediate bars of each set terminate at the bars intersected by them in order that an opening may be provided in the top of the basket to permit the bills to be placed therein. This opening may be covered by a door consisting of a perforated or open-mesh fabric 23 secured to a frame consisting of side and end bars 24, the side Abars resting upon the longitudinal bars 21 at the sides of the door opening vand the end bars fitting between and against the transverse bars 20 Vat the ends of the door opening. -In order to provide a firm support for the door at all four sides of the same, the longitudinal bars 21 are slightly arched between the end bars 20, as indicated at 25, 'so that the upper surfaces of all the bars will be brouoht into the same horizontal plane, as will be readily understood. The side bars of the door are provided with elongated pins 26 at their ends which are adapt ed to engage staples or similar retainers 27 on the kupper sides of the outer transverse bars 20, as shown clearly in Figs. 3 and 7. The staples or keepers 27 are spaced apart a distance slightly greater than the distance between the inner ends of the pins 26 so that by sliding the door slightly upon the basket, the pins may be engaged in or disengaged from the keepers so as to permit the removal or application of the door, as will be readily understood on reference to Fig. 7. In order to secure the door in its closed position to prevent the loss or abstract-ion of any of the bills placed therein, I provide a latch bar 2S which is secured to the central transverse bar 20 at one side of the door opening by a hinge 29 and is provided at its free end with a slot 30 adapted to receive a hasp 31 through which a lock 32 may be engaged above the latch so as to hold the latch securely across the door. The latch, it will be seen at once, clamps the door against the basket, and in order to prevent sliding of the door under the' latch I provide a slot 33 in the latch, near its hinged end, which may be engaged by a 'pin 34 rising from the adjacent side bar of the door, as clearly shown in Figs. 3, 6 and 7.

vAt the center of the latch bar 28 I provide a staple 35 which is adapted to project through a slot 36 in a latch bar 37 Vand receives a lock 38 by which independent movement of the latch bars will be prevented.

VThe'latch bar 37 is engaged .over a hook,

staple or other hinge device 39 upon one of the outer transverse bars 20 and extends across the door and over the latch bar 28,

as clearly shown, the free end of the latch 37 being engaged over a staple 40 by means of a slot 41. The staple 4U rises from the frame of the basket and receives a lock 42 whereby the latch will be lirmly secured in its locked position, in which it will not only press upon the latch 28, but will extend over the door and bear upon the end bars of the Same so as to firmly clamp the door in its position to close the basket.

It will be readily understood from the foregoing description that the bills to be cleaned are placed in the basket and retained therein by inserting the door and locking the same, after which the filled basket is inserted through the entrance neck 3 into the body and its journals 15 engaged in the bearings 14 and secured therein, whereupon the machine body is oscillated so as to cause the water or other cleaning agent, previously placed in the body, to permeate back and forth through the basket and the currency therein. In order to facilitate the insertion and removal of the basket, handles 43 are provided on the central longitudinal bars 21 at the ends of the basket, and in order to brace the basket within the machine body, the end transverse bars 2O are shaped to provide depending feet 44 adapted to bear against the bottom of the body, as shown in Fig. 4. The feet 44, by bearing against the bottom 'of the tub or oscillatory body, serve as braces to hold the basket lirmly in engagement with the brackets 13 so that the basket will follow the movement of the body without floating around therein. During the washing operation, the bills will be prevented from working from the basket by reason of the close mesh of the fabric covering the same, and the door will be held closely and tightly in the door opening of the basket by reason of the two latches arranged at right angles to each other, the upper latch 37 being sprung somewhat over the latch 28 so that it will bear strongly upon the door and prevent movement of the same.

VIn Fig. 1, I have shown the machine arranged for manual operation in the same manner as disclosed in my hereinbefore mentioned patent. I contemplate, however, operating the apparatus mechanically from an electric or other motor and for this purpose I provide a crank shaft 45 under one end of the machine which is connected by a pitman 46 with a transverse rod 47 secured to and extending between the rockers 4. A driving pulley 48 is provided at a convenient point of this crank shaft and a belt or similar device 49 is engaged with this driving pulley in order that motion may be im` parted thereto and through it to the crank shaft from any convenient form of motor.

The tub or body is provided at one end with a suitable outlet or discharge 50 whereby it may be drained after using, and in order to hold the body stationary to facilitate the insertion or removal of the basket, I employ the props or locking bars 51 which are provided with longitudinal slots 52 engaging pins 53 o-n the sides of the rockers and resting normally upon the projections 54 on the rockers` When it is desired to operate the machine, the locking bars will be in the position shown in full lines in Fig. 1, but when it is desired to hold the body at rest, the bars are swung upon the pins 53 as pivots to the position shown in dotted lines in said figure, and are shifted longitudinally upon the said pivot pins so that one end of each locking bar will engage the under side of a rib or cleat 55 on the side of the body while the opposite end of the locking bar will bear upon rests or offsets 56 on the side of the base. Inasmuch as the locking bars are arrangedat opposite sides of the central line of the ody, the engagement of the bars with the cleats 55 and the offsets 56 will prevent the oscillation of the body so that the basket may be easily inserted or removed.

The basket having been filled and the door secured, as before stated, the basket will be tilted so as to be easily inserted through the entrance in the top of the oscillatory basket or tub and the ljournals l5 are then engaged in the brackets 13 and secured by the engagement of the linch pins 17, after which the cover 9 is fitted in place and the body vibrated. The water or other cleaning fluid will be caused to rush from end to end of the body as the same is oscillated and will be forced to .circulate through the basket. As the water rushes to the end of the body it will compress the air within the air chambers 11 and 12 which will react by its expansion so as to force the same through the basket with sufficient power to remove from the bills therein all foreign matter collected upon the same. The liquid is thus violently agitated by the movement of the tub or body so that the bills within the basket will be rapidly and thoroughly cleaned and by this means will be made again fit for use without fear of transmitting disease.

The washing of currency because of the character of the material being treated presents problems not found in the washing of other materials, since in the washing of currency the safety of the currency is paramount, and special precautions must be taken against either injury or loss, the operations being performed under the supervision of but not by the official or officials charged with the safety of the currency. 1t is, therefore, imperative that the structure be capable of having the currency safely locked in the receptacle for the same without possibility of any of the currency being surreptitiously r-emoved, and this condition of safety must prevail until the currency has been cleansed and dried, so that it may be easily removed either by. the responsible party or parties or by others under proper supervision, and if need be can be readily counted as a check against improper removal of any of the currency.

In order 'to prevent mutilation or any injury whatsoever to the currency, the basket 16 is free from internal obstruction, and the walls are by preference curved throughout, so that no angles are presented to the currency. The strengthening framework of the basket is outside the same and the perforated or open covering of foraminous material is interior to the framework, thus presenting nothing within the basket upon which` the currency might catch to thereby become mutilated. j

After the currency has been washed, it must be dried, and for this purpose the action of heat and centrifugal force is utilized, the basketwith the currency therein being removable as a whole from the washer and is introduceable as a whole into a drier described and claimed in application No. 566388 for a currency drier, filed by me on June 11, 1910, but the claims which relate to the structures common to both the present case and the drier are made in this case.

Only those parts which are common to both the washing and the drying operations are made removable from the washing structure and insertible into the drying structure, and these parts are made removable as a whole, so that after the currency is locked in the basket, there is no necessity of unlocking the basket, or of having access to the interior thereof from the time the currency is first placed in the basket until the drying operation has been completed. For this purpose the basket is provided with alined journals adapted to and removable from suitable bearings in the washing machine, and likewise adapted to and removable from suitable bearings in the drier, and, furthermore, the basket is provided with feet which serve to steady it in the washing machine and hold it against rotative movement, since rotation is not desirable in the washing machine, but it will not interfere with rotative movements necessary to generate the centrifugal force to drive off the washing fluid in the drier.

Having thus described my invention, what 1 claimis l. A receptacle for currency having pervious walls and a removable cover, said receptacle being provided with oppositely disposed ournals and having its interior wh olly unobstructed.

2. A receptacle for currency comprising a basket having pervious `Walls defining a chamber, the interior of which is Wholly unobstructed, and a supporting frame for the pervious` Walls eXterior thereto and to Which the Walls are fixedly secured.

3. A receptacle for currency having pervious Walls and a supporting framework therefor to Which the Walls are fiXedly secured, said receptacle being provided With a removable cover, and thev interior of the basketbeing Wholly unobstructed, and oppositely disposed journals and supporting feet carried by the frame of the basket.

4. The combination With an oscillatory tub, of brackets Within the same at the ends thereof, and a foraminous basket provided at opposite ends With journals adapted to engage said brackets, and on its under side with depending feetadapted to bear upon the bottom of the tub.

5. The combination With tub, of a foraminous basket adapted to be removably secured Within the tub, said basket comprising longitudinal and transverse intersecting bars, a perforated fabric sean oscillatory 'cured to said bars, a door detachably engaging the top of the basket, and means for securing the door upon the basket.

6. The combination with an oscillatory tub, of a foraminous basket removably fitted therein and comprising intersecting bars, a perforated fabric secured to said bars, solne of the bars terminating at the intersecting bars to provide an opening in the top of the basket, a door fitting said opening, and latches secured upon the basket and extending over the door and provided with securing means whereby they Will clamp the door in place.

7. The combination with an oscillatory tub, of a foraminous basket removably fitted therein, and consisting of intersecting bars and a perforated fabric secured to the same, some of the bars terminating at the intersecting bars to provide a door opening, retaining devices secured upon the basket adjacent the said opening, a door fitting the said opening and provided with elongated pins adapted to engage said retaining devices, and a latch secured to the basket and extending over the door to secure the door in place. V

8. The combination With an oscillatory tub, of a foraminous basket removably fitted l therein, and consisting of intersecting bars and a perforated fabric secured to the same,

some of the bars terminating at the intersecting bars to provide a door opening, retaining devices secured upon the basket adjacentthe said opening, a door fitting the said opening and provided With elongated pins adapted to engage said retaining devices, an upstanding pin on the door, and a latch bar hinged upon the basket-.at one side.

esine of the door and provided adj acentthe hinge with a longitudinal slot to engage the said pin and adapted to be locked to the basket at the opposite side of the door.

9. The combination With an oscillatory tub, of a foraminous basket removably fitted therein, and consisting of intersecting bars and a perforated fabric secured to the same, some of the bars terminating at the intersecting bars to provide a door opening, retaining devices secured upon the basket adjacent the said opening, a door fitting the said opening and provided With elongated pins adapted to engage said retaining devices, a latch hinged upon" the basket at one side of the door and adapted to extend over the door and the first-mentioned latch and be secured to the basket at the opposite end of the door, the said second latch being provided with an opening to receive a locking means carried by the first-mentioned latch.

10. A currencyvvashing machine comprising an oscillatory tub provided with interior journal bearings in line one With the other, and in a plane longitudinal ofthe tub and perpendicular to the axis of oscillation, and a pervious basket provided With oppositely disposed journals adapted to the journal bearings Within the tub.

11. The combination With an oscillatory tub, of a foraminous basket removably secured at its ends Within the tub and provided on its under side with feet adapted to bear upon the bottom of the tub.

12. A currency Washing machine comprising an oscillatory tub having an opening for access to the interior thereof, a cover for closing said opening, bearings Within the tub in line one With the other, and a basket having an unobstructed interior and pervious Walls defining such interior and provided with journals adapted to thel bearings, and locking means for removably securing the journals in the bearings, said basket having a removable cover and locking means therefor, the opening in the tub being of a size to permit the introduction and removal of the basket With its journals and with the cover locked to the basket.

13. The combination with a receptacle having interior supports, of a basket having pervious Walls and an unobstructed interior defined by said Walls, said basket having a removable cover, means for locking the cover to the basket and oppositely disposed journals adapted to the supports Within the receptacle, the basket With its cover in the locked position and with its journals being introduceable and removable as a Whole With respect to the receptacle.

14. A receptacle for currency having an unobstructed interior inclosed by pervious Walls and provided With a removable cover, and locking means for the cover.

15. A receptacle for currency having a Wholly unobstructed interior and pervious Walls defining such interior, a supporting framework for the Walls exterior thereto and 5 to which the Walls are in fixed relation, a

removable cover for the receptacle, oppo' sitely disposed journals carried by and fast to the frame of the receptacle, and a contaner for the receptacle having supports for l0 the journals, said receptacle being as a Whole readily introduceable in and removable from the container.

In testimony, that I claim the foregoing as niy own, I have hereto aiiixed my signan ture in the presence of two Witnesses.

FRANK B. CHURCHILL.

Witnesses:

JOHN I-I. SIGGERS, R. W. BISHOP. 

